Small change from children at St James Catholic Church has added up in a big way for the Alberta Children's Hospital.

Children have been dropping coins into a jar during mass and Youth Ministry Coordinator Amy Heggenstaller-Boon says this year's donation have added up to thousands of dollars that will directly benefit the hospital.

"It's our really young children in the church that at this point get to leave the pews and run up to the altar and make a donation," she explains. "Father chose for it to go to the Children's Hospital and over the course of this year, the children have fundraised $4,600.00."

She says there's no pressure on the kids to donate and the idea is to present an opportunity for them to share and give back.

Heggenstaller-Boon says it turns out that the amount of their donation will cover the bill of a very important piece of equipment currently needed by the hospital.

"When I called to let them know that we had this money, a really cool thing happened," she says. "They needed almost the exact amount of money that we had to pay for a digital imaging device, which is going to help them perform surgeries on children less invasively because of the detail that this imaging device is able to detect."

Parish priest Father Luciano Cortopassi, along with a couple of children who attend the church, made their way into Calgary Friday to deliver the donation to the Alberta Children's Hospital.

Questions, comments, or story ideas? Email us at news@okotoksonline.com